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IdahoGal:
You have a post war .38 Military & Police revolver manufactured between 1945 & 1948. In a modified form this is still manufactured as the S&W Model 10.
The S stands for Safety - an internal hammer block was fitted to all S&Ws after late 1944 that prevents it from firing if dropped on the hammer. Literally millions of these guns were made, so value is not great, in 2006 the standard catalog of S&W gave a value of $300 in excellent condition.

p7rene:
November 1984.
Your gun is subject to a recall by Smith & Wesson. With some magnum loads the primer may flow back around the firing pin, locking the cylinder. S&W will pay shipping both ways and install a new firing pin and bushing if you wish to give them a call. If the gun has been modified under the recall there should be an M stamped after the model number under the cylinder yoke.

IdahoGal:
S&W don't recommend use of PlusP (increased pressure) ammunition in any gun made before 1957. Although it is probably safe to do so, as you are apparently a new shooter I recommend you stick to standard pressure ammunition for your training, it will be less stressful, with less recoil & blast. Your gun features the old 'long action' which is renowned for a very smooth trigger pull. S&W changed to the short action in 1948, so new parts are not available. Don't let anyone perform a trigger job on it unless they have an old gun to scavenge parts off if they screw up. If you do need parts they can usually be had from Numrich Arms in New York. Good luck with your training.

Thank you for the heads up about my gun, Radagast. I was told about not using "hot" ammo in it, but didn't know about the parts issue. I will add that to my book of knowledge! The gun doesn't appear to have been fired much at all and is in really good condition overall. My neighbor had a gunsmith friend look at it and he said it looked really clean.

Please help me find the DOB for the 2 guns I've just recently acquired

a) caliber
b) bbl length (from cylinder to muzzle)
c) grips shape (round or square)
d) number of shots/cylinder bores
e) type of sights.
f) serial number, and if there is a letter in front of or anywhere near the s/n on the bottom of the grip
g) Model number

Your Model 681 Distinguished Service Magnum should have a serial number similar to gun number 2, 3 letters then 4 numbers. Check again, it appears you have quoted an assembly number, used to track fitted parts in the factory and not a serial number. The serial number will be on the bottom of the grip frame, if you have target or aftermarket grips then you will have to remove them to see the serial number. The serial number is sometimes duplicated on the frame under the cylinder yoke cut out.

Your Model 65-3 .357 Military & Police Heavy Barrel Stainless was manufactured between November 1984 & January 1985. The grip should be a round butt, the Standard Catalog of S&W notes only 10 square butt guns with a three inch barrel, the rest were round butt versions.

The actual serial number is K373105, the dot is probably a misstamp. The grips are aftermarket, probably no more than 10 years old, the original grips would have been walnut magna grips with an uncheckered diamond around the grip screws.
Values are different in Canada, you are best to ask at www.canadiangunnutz.com You will also find contacts for getting some training there. Think of it as THR for Canada.

Your Model 681 Distinguished Service Magnum should have a serial number similar to gun number 2, 3 letters then 4 numbers. Check again, it appears you have quoted an assembly number, used to track fitted parts in the factory and not a serial number. The serial number will be on the bottom of the grip frame, if you have target or aftermarket grips then you will have to remove them to see the serial number. The serial number is sometimes duplicated on the frame under the cylinder yoke cut out.

Your Model 65-3 .357 Military & Police Heavy Barrel Stainless was manufactured between November 1984 & January 1985. The grip should be a round butt, the Standard Catalog of S&W notes only 10 square butt guns with a three inch barrel, the rest were round butt versions.

You are right. The serial number on the 681 is ABY 63xx. Hopefully you can get its DOB with this corrected info.

Buddhabelly:
January 1983 (ABLxxxx) to October 1983 (ADExxxx).
Your gun is subject to a recall by Smith & Wesson. With some magnum loads the primer may flow back around the firing pin, locking the cylinder. S&W will pay shipping both ways and install a new firing pin and bushing if you wish to give them a call. If the gun has been modified under the recall there should be an M stamped after the model number under the cylinder yoke.

510wells:
Your model 15-3 Conbat Masterpiece was made in 1974. There are many guns frm that era and earlier that still have a perfect factory finish - many people purchased firearms but never fired them. If the trigger, hammer and grip screws are straw colored rather than blued that is evidence of original finish or a quality reblue. Ditto look for signs of polishing, such as thinned stampings or rounding on the edges of the side plate. If none are present I would tend to believe it is original.

patsue:
Barrel length was 1 & 7/8 inches. The .38 special Model 640 was made from 1989 to 1996. The serial numbers in the Standard Catalog of S&W for that period are not sequential, so I can't be certain, but the range BKN5330 to BKN6905 was shipped in August 1991, so July or August of that year seems probable.

mesinge2:
S&W do not recommend the use of plus P ammunition in guns made prior to 1957, the year of the introduction of model numbers. Your Model 36 was manufactured between 1962 (serial 295000) & 1969 (serial 786544). As such it should be fine for occasional use with plus P .38 special loads. PlusP has a 10% pressure increase over standard pressure loads, so I doubt even regular use will accelerate wear. PLusPPlus is a different matter, there is no industry standard for +p+ so rounds so marked may be anywhere between standard pressure and .357 magnum pressures.

Anything that gets a lady interested in shooting is OK with me, so I will ignore the crime of posting a pic of a classic Smith with bright pink plastic grips. :P

bflobill_69
Your 17-5s serial number dates to around July 1987 per the Standard Catalog of S&W. It also states that the 17-5 was introduced in 1988, continuing in production until 1990 when it was replaced by the 17-6 with full underlug. My guess is your gun was produced in mid to late 1987 and is one of the first 17-5 variants.

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